Help, Pinkeye!

I know at an herbal store they have some homeopathic rememdies.  When we tried them it took forever for it to go away.  I’m really not sure if they actually did anything or not or if the pinkeye eventually went away on its own.  After that we just decided to go to the eye doctor and get the script meds.  That stuff works great.  Sorry, I know not much help, just telling you our experience.

I have experience with pinkeye! In addition to any OTC or Rx remedies you use, a warm compress on the eye really helps. I like to use a teabag that has been soaked in warm/hot water as it seems to fit on the eye nicely. But you can use a cotton ball or washcloth as well. Do this several times a day. Discard the teabag or cotton ball after one use, and wash the washcloth if you use a cloth. Pinkeye is very contagious and can spread through the family (and from one eye to the other). So, everyone needs to wash their hands often and keep hands away from faces.

With a persistent case of pinkeye, I once shredded a potato at the recommendation of a friend and used that as an eye compress. (It seemed to work!) Might be best to use an organic potato if you give this a try. We just covered the infected eyes with the pototoes for about 15 minutes.

If you have echinacea/goldenseal, give that to the patient for a few days.

My son was scared by the crusty stuff on his eyes in the morning that seemed to glue his eyes shut. You might want to tell the kids that crusty stuff is normal with pinkeye and not permanent.

I really think the compresses do wonders. Keep them going several times througout the day (good time for read-alouds).

Good luck!

If, by chance, you are still nursing, a few drops (or squirts) of mother’s milk in the infected eyes a couple of times a day should clear it right up.  Mother’s milk is full of immunoglobulins and that’s all we used.  

HTH – Richele